Tag Archives: Thanksgiving

We had the privilege of meeting a turkey a few years ago at the Gentle Barn (which was located in Tarzana, CA at the time). He was such a sweet, gentle bird. He followed us around and loved to be petted. Our experience with Tommy (the turkey) mirrors that of Erik Marcus, the author of Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating. He noted that, “Turkeys remember your face and they will sit closer to you with each day you revisit. Come back day after day and, before long, a few birds will pick you out as their favorite and they will come running up to you whenever you arrive.” To read more interesting facts about turkeys click here —>The Hidden Lives of Turkeys

Tennessee really loved going to the Gentle Barn to hang out with Tommy, who is pictured above. Unfortunately, Tommy is no longer with us (read his life story here), but the Gentle Barn has rescued four more turkeys who can be adopted this Thanksgiving. We are vegetarians, so we never eat turkey, but we thought we would go a step further this year and adopt a turkey for Thanksgiving. If you would like to adopt a turkey this Thanksgiving, there are several organizations who have turkey adoptions this year. The following links will take you straight to the adoption of the turkey of your choice.

As home schoolers, we are privy to information that most kids are never told in traditional school. The curriculum that we received from Oak Meadow a few years ago included a book called “…If You Sailed on the Mayflower in 1620” by Ann McGovern. It is published by Scholastic and readily available in any major bookstore. Tennessee and I discovered some very interesting facts that are usually omitted and/or distorted by most traditional teachers and/or learning institutions.

DID YOU KNOW:

1. The Pilgrims had TWO ships. The Speedwell and the Mayflower.

2. The Speedwell started leaking so they had to take it back to England and pile onto the Mayflower.

3. The Pilgrims didn’t have any money to buy the Mayflower so they made a deal with an English businessman to work for him for seven years to pay it off. When they got to the New World, everything they worked for was sent to him for seven years.

4. There were 102 people on the Mayflower. Only 35 of the 102 people on board the Mayflower did so for Religious reasons. These were the Pilgrims. The remainder of the 102 passengers sailed to the New World to find work and/or for adventure.

5. The Mayflower began its journey on September 6th, 1620 and arrived on November 9th, 1620. It took them 66 days to get to the New World.

6. The Pilgrims did not celebrate Christmas.

7. The first Native American that the Pilgrims met spoke English. His name was Samoset.

8. Samoset brought Sqanto to meet the Pilgrims and he stayed with them for the rest of his life. They were best friends.

9. Squanto showed them how to farm the land, hunt and use herbs. He saved their life and their village from destruction. He also orchestrated the first Peace Treaty.

10. Pilgrims did not always dress in black clothes. They only did that on Sundays. Little boys wore long dresses until they were 6 years old.

11. The first Thanksgiving lasted for 3 days. It was in the middle of October of 1621.

Tofurkey is what vegetarians and vegans eat on Thanksgiving instead of a turkey. According to Tofurkey.com, Tofurkey is: “a pre-cooked vegetarian feast designed to be the delicious centerpiece of your holiday or everyday meal. Made from a revolutionary tofu-wheat protein blend, Tofurky is known for its incredible, turkey-like texture and flavor”